Soldiers & PTSD: Are you concerned?

The United States has been at war now for more than a decade, and the weight of multiple deployments is taking its toll on our servicemembers.

Today, we are facing a mental health crisis. Between 2000 and 2011, the Army diagnosed 76,176 soldiers with PTSD. This number doesn't even take into account the estimated tens of thousands of undiagnosed cases of PTSD and other mental health disorders.

The media has finally started focusing more attention on this issue, but it only comes in the wake of tragedies like the shooting massacre in Afghanistan that was allegedly carried out by a soldier from Joint Base Lewis-McChord.

While Jim opposed the Iraq War and thinks we should get out of Afghanistan, as a psychiatrist who treated many soldiers returning from the Vietnam War, he knows we must do more to help those who have returned from these conflict zones. Please fill out the below survey to let him know what you think.

What should we do about the mental health needs of our servicemembers?
(Feel free to check off more than one answer.)

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We should provide all returning soldiers with thorough mental health evaluations and follow-up with their family members.

We shouldn't subject soldiers to multiple deployments unless they have passed a rigorous mental health evaluation.

If a soldier shows signs of PTSD during their deployment, they shouldn't be allowed to continue fighting regardless of the treatment they receive in the battlefield. They should be returned home immediately.

We should order a thorough investigation of what has gone on at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.

Other

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